How did a computer scientist such as Geoffrey Hinton manage to win a Nobel Prize in physics when computer science already has its own Nobel Prize equivalent in the Turing Awards?
13.06.2025 05:42
Fortunately, we are privy to the discussion that led up to this:
"Good point, I'm sure we can swing it. And let's tack on Hopfield while we're about it."
"Hey guys, AI is pretty big so let's centre our prizes on it this year. We can get some attention, and it's all about advertising, at the end of the day, isn't it?"
Where and how did ballet originate?
^† They rationalise their decision thusly:
When he's standing, in front of you
"Where can we shoehorn it in? Chemistry is easy 'cos AlphaFold; but what about physics? A bit more challenging, right?"
I want to touch my sister’s boobs. What do I say?
My 11 million SEK, Dr Jo.
[Younger voice] "But wait a minute, Ising-Lenz goes back to the 1920's. And didn't Hinton plagiarise rather a lot? He also didn't invent modern backprop, did he, that's Linnainmaa? And Amari preceded Hopfield, too. That's not a good look."
(Bob Dylan, Nobel Prize for Literature, 2016)
Why do men like BBW? What is the attraction?
In awarding prizes, the Nobel Committees often seem only marginally more competent than MTG is at explaining meteorology. And if they can give a literature prize for lyrics like:
They then move on to selectively provide their own version of history. But hey, it’s OK. They wanted controversy, didn’t they? Whatever.
^* Fibiger got the 1926 Medicine prize for the discovery of Spiroptera carcinoma (Don’t ask).
I want to have anal sex, but my wife refuses. What do I do?
(Mumbles of assent)
[The basic structure of artificial neural networks] has close similarities with spin models in statistical physics applied to magnetism or alloy theory. This year’s Nobel Prize in Physics recognizes research exploiting this connection to make breakthrough methodological advances in the field of ANN.
[Older voice] "Mmm. What about Hinton, he's widely regarded? Nobody got fired for buying IBM"
Was Jimmy Carter a good President of the United States?
There you go.^†
Why wait any longer for the world to begin?
"Naah, Linnainmaa is a Finn. Can't give it to a bloody Finnish mathematician. Let's go for drinks. Brännvin anyone?"
I Can't Wait for Apple's F1 Movie. Its Haptic iPhone Trailer Has Me Even More Excited - CNET
Whatever.
Whatever.
"Good idea, but how can we wangle something that says 'Physics'?"
In December 1973, when Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, comedian Tom Lehrer dropped his mic and stamped on it—satire had just died.
Why wait any longer for the one you love?
You can have your cake and eat it too
If Jesus was crucified by Governor Pontius Pilate, why does the Quran deny his death?
"Didn't he do something with Boltzmann in it? That sounds physics-y. RBMs and stuff, eh?"
A fly on the wall at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
… then anything is possible. There’s no rule that a Nobel Prize has to make sense.^*